Sophie Devine of New Zealand walks off. Photo: PHOTOSPORT
A hectic cricketing schedule over the last couple of years hit veteran White Fern Sophie Devine harder than she expected and she considered leaving the sport.
Devine will return for New Zealand's the T20 series against Australia starting in Auckland on Friday after being on a wellbeing break since January.
"I probably just got to a point where I needed to step away for a little bit," Devine said.
"Obviously the last 12 to 18 months have been massive for me personally but also the White Ferns group the amount of cricket that we've played winning the world cup and things like that and it probably hit me a little bit harder than I realised and for me with the support of New Zealand Cricket, family, friends I've been really fortunate to be able to have that time away."
While she "hibernated" and shut off anything to do with cricket during the early stages of her break, thoughts of retirement crept into her mind.
Devine is 35 years old and has been playing for New Zealand since 2006.
She is sought after by franchise leagues around the world having played in competitions in Australia, England, India and the Caribbean and remains a key member of the White Ferns even though she has stepped away from T20 captaincy after last year's world cup.
Sophie Devine, Amelia Kerr, Jess Kerr and Georgia Plimmer sign T-A-W-A with their hands after winning the T20 World Cup final. Photo: ICC
Overseas opportunities like The Hundred where she will play in August "really excite" Devine but the potential to be with the White Ferns at another Cricket World Cup in India in October was also a big factor in her decision to stick with cricket after taking the second wellbeing break of her career.
"Still felt like I've got a little bit more to give in the black shirt so for me that [world cup] opportunity was there but also being ok with the fact if I was done I've had a pretty good run of it. But certainly watching the girls over the last couple of weeks there's a big itch there that's still to scratch."
Devine believes she is mentally and physically ready to be back on the park against Australia.
"I don't want to come back into this team and be underprepared so I've been working away for a number of weeks now so I feel as prepared as I can be but you never really know until you're out in amongst the fire. So I'm ready as I can be so we'll see what happens, obviously I have to get myself back into the team first as there's been a few new faces around."
Devine is encouraging people who are struggling with their mental health to speak up.
"Everyone goes through their struggles and it might look different it might feel different to each individual but [my message] is certainly to reach out it doesn't matter whether you're an athlete, a student it doesn't matter who you are to make sure you get that support around you."
Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
